I've had more experience with the Saiga Shotgun series than the rifles, but I have had and shot a few in 7.62X39! They are not a POS, they are a Modified versioj of the AK-47, hard to beat that design! Now, with that said, are they always a good value? Well, for right now, you can get mags and parts, they seem good! But, if things with Russia go the way they are, you might be cut off from Parts and mag supplies! NBow that sucks! No, a lot of the internals are not AK-47, can you Modifiy them, YUP< is it a pain in the ass? YUP! AS in all things, buy with care, get what ya need for support parts and mags and might be Right as rain! If not, you have a rifle that if you bust a part, your screwed, now, with that said, How many AK's I've seen broken in 30 years? 2! Thats not bad odds anyhow? LOL I guess what I'm trying to say is GO FOR IT, but Go for it, understanding the Limitations that you face? Just my Opinion, but ya did ask?

I've got bot a Saiga 12 and a 16" Saiga 308 & can whole heartedly recommend the Saiga 308. Don't expect MOA accuracy from it, but I manage roughly 3-4" groups at 100 yds with Barnaul soft point ammo & iron sights (depending on how much coffee I had to drink before going to the range.......).
If you do get one, plan on doing a pistol grip conversion - The trigger in the stock Saiga absolutely SUX & needs to be replaced. I did the pistol grip conversion on mine & installed a Red Star Arms trigger group in it & the difference is like night & day. Checkout http://forum.saiga-12.com/ for discussion about the Saiga shotguns & rifles. Lots of good info there as well as conversion tutorials.

Fit and finish may not be as pretty as $1500 rifles, but a dependable AK action and a price tag of less than $400 makes it a beautiful thing. It is reasonably accurate ( I can bounce old soda cans around all day at 50 yards with iron sights ).

I think the saiga is the best gun you can buy for the money. Absolutely the most reliable gun design ever made. The .308 does have a sorry trigger, but I have gotten used to mine. With a bench rest mine has shot groups of 1.5" with Austrailian surplus ammo. I also have a 7.62x39 that I have converted. I will never part with either of them.

I think the saiga is the best gun you can buy for the money. Absolutely the most reliable gun design ever made.

I don't know about that. It is hard to fault the reliability of a good turnbolt rifle like the Mauser or a Holland and Holland double rifle. And you can get a lot of milsurp turnbolts for less money than a new Saiga.

Now, if you said "the most reliable autoloader design ever made", I am sure many people would agree, including myself.